Stabilizing means for a vibratory conveyor apparatus

ABSTRACT

A stabilizing and support means for an actuating means arranged to impart vibratory forces to at least two longitudinally aligned conveyor sections resiliently supported by inclined members from a base frame. The stabilizing means includes stabilizing members yieldably interconnecting a shaft of the actuating means with one of adjacent conveyor section end portions whereby the actuating means is fully floatingly supported by the conveyor sections and whereby transmission of vibratory forces to the base frame means and its supporting floor structure are virtually eliminated.

United States Patent lnventor Lee B. Holman Whittier, Calif.

Appl. No. 836,526

Filed June 25, 1969 Patented Dec. 7, i971 Assignee State Steel Products, Inc.

City of Industry, Calif.

STABlLIZlNG MEANS FOR A VIBRATORY CONVEYOR APPARATUS 3 Claims, 6 Drawing Figs.

US. Cl ..l98/220CA, 198/220 DB Int. Cl 865g 27/20 Field of Search 198/220,

220 R, 220 DB, 220 BA, 220 BB, 220 DA, 220 CA [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,038,589 6/1962 Allen et a1. 298/220 A10 3,176,834 4/1965 Allen etal. l98/220C10 3,362,524 1/1968 Holman 198/220Cl2 Primary E.raminer-- Evon C. Blunk Assistant E.raminer.lohnny D. Cherry Attorney-Miketta, Glenny, Poms & Smith ABSTRACT: A stabilizing and support means for an actuating means arranged to impart vibratory forces to at least two ion gitudinally aligned conveyor sections resiliently supported by inclined members from a base frame. The stabilizing means includes stabilizing members yieldably interconnecting a shaft of the actuating means with one of adjacent conveyor section end portions whereby the actuating means is fully floatingly supported by the conveyor sections and whereby transmission 1 of vibratory forces to the base frame means and its supporting floor structure are virtually eliminated.

PATENTEBBEC 7137i 3.625346 SHEET 1 OF 2 EVE/v ro/Z 155 B. HOLMfl/V PATENTED DEC 7 WI SHEET 2 OF 2 INVQVIVTOZQ. 155B. Hanna/v WM, K JM BACKGROUND OF INVENTION The present invention relates to an arrangement'of stabilizing means for a vibrating conveyor means of the type of construction and arrangement disclosed in my U.S. Pat. No. 3,362,524 issued Jan. 9, 1968. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,362,524 a material handling vibrating apparatus for flowable discrete materials includes a longitudinally extending base frame fixed to a supporting floor structure, at least two conveyor sections arranged in tandem and spaced above said base frame, a plurality of inclined leaf type members resiliently supporting the conveyor sections from the base frame means, and actuating means supported beneath the adjacent conveyor section end portions and provided with eccentric connections to each conveyor section end portion, the arrangement of the eccentric connections in neutral position lying perpendicular to the angle of inclination of the inclinedleaf supporting members. The shaft of the actuating means was also pivotally connected to one end of a stabilizing arm which had its other end pivotally connected to the base frame and had its longitudinal axis lying parallel to the angle of inclination of the inclined members. The patented vibrating conveyor means utilized force components to assist in the work of moving or separating material instead of being transmitted to the supporting ,building construction. Various advantages of the patented vibrating conveyor construction included reduction of required horsepower of the driving or motor means, obviating the necessity of adding weights to the conveyor sections in order to counterbalance various force components, and to impart vibration to the conveyor sections in a novel manner.

The present invention contemplates a vibrating conveyor construction employing a base frame means, aligned conveyor sections resilient supporting inclined members, and drive means quite similar to that of U.S. Pat. No. 3,362,524. The present invention contemplates a novel arrangement of the actuating means and stabilizing means in that the actuating means may be positioned in short coupling radius with the conveyor sections so as to effectively apply vibratory force components to the conveyor sections and wherein the stabilizing means provides a yieldable interconnection with one of the conveyor sections. The actuating means is thereby made virtually completely fully floating, force components of vibration being transmitted entirely to the conveyor sections.

The primary object of the present invention therefore is to disclose and provide a novel construction and operation of a vibrating conveyor means of the type described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,362,524 whereby forces developed by the drive means and actuating means are essentially fully employed toward the transportation, movement and separation of material being handled by the conveyor means.

An object of the present invention is to disclose and provide a stabilizing means for such a conveyor means whereby transmission of vibratory forces to a supporting structure is virtually eliminated.

Another object of the present invention is to disclose and provide a stabilizing means for such a conveyor means whereby transmission of vibratory forces to a supporting structure is virtually eliminated.

Another object of the present invention is to disclose and provide a stabilizing means for an actuating means for a vibrating conveyor of the type above mentioned wherein the stabilizing means is carried by and supported from one ofthe conveyor sections.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a stabilizing means for a vibrating conveyor of the type mentioned above wherein the stabilizing member interconnecting a rotatable actuating shaft and the adjacent conveyor end includes a flexible leaf-type element.

Another object of the invention is to disclose and provide a novel stabilizing means for an actuating means wherein the stabilizing and actuating means are carried by the conveyor sections in relatively close short coupled spaced relationship so that the effective radius of arc of the stabilizing means is approximately that of the free bending length of leaf-type inclined members resiliently supporting the conveyor sections.

A still further object of the present invention is to disclose and provide an actuating means for a vibratory conveyor means including at least two conveyor sections wherein the arrangement of the eccentric connection means of the actuating means with the conveyor sections in neutral position lies at an angle to the axis of stabilizing means interconnecting the actuating means with one of the conveyor sections.

Various other objects and advantages of the present invention will be readily apparent from the following description of the drawings in which an exemplary embodiment of the present invention is shown.

IN THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a material handling vibratory conveyor apparatus embodying this invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken in the horizontal transverse plane indicated by line II-II of FIG. 3.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary view, partly in section, of the conveyor apparatus shown in FIG. 1, the section being taken in vertical longitudinal planes indicated by line III-III of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged vertical transverse sectional view taken in the plane indicated by line IV-IV of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary sectional view showing a modification of the stabilizing means, the section being taken in the same plane as that of FIG. 2.

FIG; 6 is a fragmentary sectional view taken in the plane indicated by line Vl-VI of FIG. 5.

- Generally speaking, a vibratory material handling apparatus generally indicated at 10 is similar to the vibratory apparatus shown in my U.S. Pat. No. 3,362,524 issued Jan. 9, I968 and may comprise a longitudinally extending base frame means 12, a material conveying means comprising at least two conveyor sections, namely a feed conveyor section 14 and a discharge conveyor section 15 supported by a plurality of inclined resilient leaf-type means 16. Adjacent and above one end of feed conveyor section 14 is a feed hopper 17 through which flowable material may be discharged onto the feed conveyor section 14. Material transported by the conveyor means may be discharged from the discharge conveyor section 15 into suitable receptacles or other means for distribution or transportation toanother location. Actuating means 18 for imparting vibrations to the conveyor sections 14 and 15 to move the material may be driven by a driving means 19 as hereinafter described.

Base frame means 12 may comprise a pair of parallel spaced-apart longitudinally extending angle section base frame members 21 secured in suitable manner to a supporting structure or to a floor of a building. The base frame means 12 may include one or more longitudinally aligned base frame members 2 1.

Conveyor sections 14 and 15 are similarly constructed and each may comprise a pair of parallel spaced-apart longitudinally extending conveyor frame members 22, in this example, each of angle section with one leg being disposed horizontally for supporting thereon a conveyor trough 23. Bottom wall 24 of the trough may be secured to conveyor frame members 22 in any suitable manner. Adjacent end portions 25 and 26 of feed conveyor section 14 and discharge conveyor section 15 respectively may be slightly overlapped at 27 (FIG. 3) for continuous flow of material along the trough. The overlapping of the end portions includes sufficient vertical spacing between the bottom walls of the respective troughs so that vertical displacement thereof during vibration will not result in contact of the bottom walls. Trough 23 of each conveyor section may include outwardly directed horizontal flanges 28.

Means for resiliently supporting the conveyor sections 14 and 15 from the base frame means 12 comprise a plurality of longitudinally spaced resilient leaf-type members 30. Such leaf members 30 may be of rectangular configuration and made of suitable metal or impregnated multi-ply laminated fibrous material and the like. The bottom transverse edge portion of each member 30 may be secured to a square section transverse member 32 extending between and connected to upstanding legs of the base frame members 21. The top edge portion of each leaf member 30 may similarly be secured to a square section transverse member 33 which may be secured to depending legs of conveyor frame members 22. Leaf members 30 are inclined in a direction opposite to the movement of the material.

Means for adjusting the angle of inclination of leaf members 30 is fully described in my aforesaid patent and only a portion of the adjustment means is shown in FIG. 4. Briefly, transverse member 32 of a selected leaf member may be provided with a stub shaft 35 rotatably mounted in aligned openings in base frame members 21. Fixed to the adjacent end of transverse member 32 may be a longitudinally extending bar 36 adapted to be contacted by adjustment screw bolts 37 carried on a bracket 38 fixed to base frame member 21. Adjustment bolts 37 are provided on opposite sides of the axis of member 32 so that relative loosening and tightening of the adjustment bolts will permit rotation of the member 32 about its axis to modify the angle of inclination of the leaf member 30. It will be understood that such adjustment means may be employed on one or more of the leaf member constructions of each conveyor section in order to provide desired control over the inclination of the leaf-type members.

Drive means 19 may comprise a suitable motor 40 mounted alongside the base frame means 12 and having a motor shaft provided with a pulley 41 for driving a flexible belt 42 for rotation of a drive pulley 43 carried on shaft 45 of the means 18 to vibrate and actuate the conveyor sections 14 and 15.

The construction of the parts of. the vibrating apparatus described above is virtually the same as that described in my U.S. Pat. No. 3,362,524, the present invention being directed to a different and novel construction of the actuating means and stabilizing means now described.

Means 18 for actuating conveyor sections 14 and 15 include transverse shaft 45 provided with one or more flywheels 46 adjacent ends thereof. Shaft 45 is provided with an eccentric connection to each end portion 25 and 26 of the conveyor sections. ln this example, end portion 25 of feed conveyor section 14 includes a pair of centrally disposed depending bracket walls 48 secured in suitable manner as by welding to the bottom wall 24 at 49. Aligned ports at a lower portion of said bracket walls 48 support a pivot pin 50 which may pivotally mount one end of a crank arm 52 secured thereto by a U- shaped clamp 51, the arm 52 extending from eccentric means 53 carried by the shaft 45. The eccentric means 53 may include an eccentrically mounted bearing (not shown) on shaft 45, the maximum throw of said bearing in neutral position (FIG. 3) being in a vertical direction.

Conveyor end portion 26 is similarly connected to shaft 45 through a pair of spaced eccentric means 55 having eccentrically mounted bearing means therein on shaft 45. Eccentric means 55 include a crank arm 56 pivotally mounted on a pivot pin 57 supported by spaced bracket walls 58 secured in suitable manner to bottom wall 24 of conveyor end portion 26 as at 59. Clamps 60 similar to clamps 51 are provided for securing the arms 56 to pivot pins 57. The eccentric means 55 for conveyor end portion 26 are similarly mounted on shaft 45 with the maximum throw of the eccentricity lying in a vertical direction but opposite to that of eccentric means 53. Thus, it will be noted that the longitudinal axis of crank arms 52, 56 and the disposition of pivot pins 57, 50 are such that they lie generally in a horizontal plane passing through the axis of shaft 45 and, in effect, the pivotal mounting of pins 50 and 57 being in diametric opposite relation with respect to the axis of shaft 45.

Means to stabilize and to further support shaft 45 includes a stabilizing arm 62 adjacent conveyor frame members 22. Each stabilizer arm 62 is pivotally mounted on shaft 45 by a bearing means 63, the upper and opposite end of arm 62 being pivotally mounted on pivot pin 64 carried by spaced depending bracket walls 65 secured to conveyor end portion 25 inwardly of conveyor frame members 22. The axes of stabilizing arms 62 preferably lie in a plane parallel to the inclined planes of the leaf members 30.

It will be noted that shaft 45 of the actuating means 18 is fully floatably supported by the eccentric connections 53 and 55, the stabilizing arms 62, and the leaf members 30. Thus, there is no direct connection of the actuating means 18 to the supporting floor structure or to the base frame and as a result the actuating means transmits vibratory force components to the conveyor sections but such vibrations are not transmitted to the base frame means.

In operation rotation of shaft 45 by drive means 19 will cause the conveyor sections 14 and 15 to vibrate and reciprocally move on their resilient support leaves 30 to impart longitudinal and vertical force components to material particles on the conveyor sections. During such rotation of shaft 45 the axis of each pin 64 of the stabilizing arm is moved in an are having a radius approximately equal to the distance between the axes of shaft 45 and pin 64. The length of arc will correspond to the length of the are through which the upper end portions of resilient leaves 30 move during vibration. Leaf members 30 may assume during vibration a slightly curved or "S" configuration and the length of the are at the upper end portions of the resilient members is determined by the free bending length of leaf members 30. It will thus be understood that force components imparted to the conveyor sections will be approximately measured by the effective free bending length of the leaf members 30 and the radius of the arc of travel of pivot pins 64 of the stabilizing arms 62.

The above-described stabilizing means provides for relatively short coupling of the conveyor sections 1, a more uniform and simplified structural weight distribution of the conveyor sections, and the employment of maximum longitudinal force components because of the horizontal arrangement of the axes of the crank arms 52, 56. Such short coupling permits application of the dynamic force components close to the main load and thereby reduces bending forces acting on the conveyor frame.

It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the exemplary embodiment of the modified vibrating conveyor described above utilizes spring forces and eccentric forces to move material in the conveyor sections with virtually complete absence of forces transmitted to the supporting floor structure. Since the stabilizing arms are connected to one of the adjacent conveyor section end portions, the actuating means is fully floatingly supported by the conveyor section end portions and has no connection with the base frame means, the support of the conveyors being through the plurality of resilient inclined support members.

The description above is exemplary of a material handling vibrator apparatus wherein the actuating means is fully supported from the conveyor sections. ln operation the axis of shaft 45 remains steady, that is, it is not displaceable laterally of itself so that the flexible pulley drive 42 will maintain full driving engagement during operation.

In FIGS. 5 and 6, a modification of the stabilizing means is shown wherein a leaf-type stabilizing member 70 is substituted for the rigid stabilizing members 62. Leaf member 70 is fixed at one end as at 71 to bearing means 63 on shaft 45 and at its other end as at 72 to a bracket 73 secured to the conveyor section end portion. Leaf member 70 may be made of more lamina of selected width depending upon the loading of the conveyor means. Leaf member 70 is inclined to lie in a plane parallel to the planes of inclined members 30 and may be slightly bendable about its longitudinal axis.

The leaf member 70 operates in substantially the same manner as stabilizing member 62, but since it is flexible the l. In a vibratory material handling apparatus including a longitudinal base frame means, at least two conveyor sections having adjacent conveyor section end portions, and a plurality of inclined members resiliently supporting said conveyor sec tions from said base frame means, the combinationtherewith of:

actuating means including a transverse drive shaft spaced from said adjacent conveyor section end portions, means including a rigid bracket on each of said section end portions for supporting said drive shaft and a crank arm having one end pivotally connected to said bracket and having its other end eccentrically connected to said drive shaft; stabilizing means of fixed length having one end connected to said drive shaft and having its other'end connected to one of said conveyor section end portions whereby said drive shaft is supported and stabilized independently of said base frame; and drive means for said actuating means.

2. An apparatus as stated in claim 1 wherein said stabilizing means includes a flexible leaf member fixed at one end to said conveyor section end portion and at the other end to said shaft.

3. In a material handling apparatus for discrete material, the combination of:

a longitudinal frame means;

at least two conveyor sections, each having at least one conveyor section end portion proximate to a conveyor section end portion of the adjacent conveyor section;

means including a plurality of parallel inclined members resiliently supporting said conveyor sections from the frame means;

actuating means including a drive shaft, eccentric means on 'said shaft, and crank arms for supporting said shaft independently of said frame means, and interconnecting the aforesaid proximate conveyor section end portions for imparting vibrations to said conveyor sections;

stabilizer means for said drive shaft and including a stabilizer member of unchanging length having a longitudinal axis parallel to said inclined members for yieldably interconnecting said drive shaft with one of said conveyor section end portions; and drive means for said drive shaft. 

1. In a vibratory material handling apparatus including a longitudinal base frame means, at least two conveyor sections having adjacent conveyor section end portions, and a plurality of inclined members resiliently supporting said conveyor sections from said base frame means, the combination therewith of: actuating means including a transverse drive shaft spaced from said adjacent conveyor section end portions, means including a rigid bracket on each of said section end portions for supporting said drive shaft and a crank arm having one end pivotally connected to said bracket and having its other end eccentrically connected to said drive shaft; stabilizing means of fixed length having one end connected to said drive shaft and having its other end connected to one of said conveyor section end portions whereby said drive shaft is supported and stabilized independently of said base frame; and drive means for said actuating means.
 2. An apparatus as stated in claim 1 wherein said stabilizing means includes a flexible leaf member fixed at one end to said conveyor section end portion and at the other end to said shaft.
 3. In a material handling apparatus for discrete material, the combination of: a longitudinal frame means; at least two conveyor sections, each having at least one conveyor section end portion proximate to a conveyor section end portion of the adjacent conveyor section; means including a plurality of parallel inclined members resiliently supporting said conveyor sections from the frame means; actuating means including a drive shaft, eccentric means on said shaft, and crank arms for supporting said shaft independently of said frame means, and interconnecting the aforesaid proximate conveyor section end portions for imparting vibrations to said conveyor sections; stabilizer means for said drive shaft and including a stabilizer member of unchanging length having a longitudinal axis parallel to said inclined members for yieldably interconnecting said drive shaft with one of said conveyor section end portions; and drive means for said drive shaft. 